LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA, 

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Class 


Papers  from  the  Historical  Seminary 

of  Brown   University 

i 

Edited  by  J.  FRANKLIN  JAMESON,  Ph.  D.,  Professor  of  History 


III 


KNOW-NOTHINGISM     IN    RHODE    ISLAND 


BY 


CHARLES  STICKNEY,  A.  B. 


REPRINTED  FROM  THE  PUBLICATIONS  OF  THE 
RHODE  ISLAND  HISTORICAL  SOCIETY. 


V 


PROVIDENCE,    R.    I. 
1894 


\ 


Papers  from  the  Historical  Seminary 
of  Brown   University 

Edited  by  J.  FRANKLIN  JAMESON,  Ph.  D.,  Professor  of  History 


III 

KNOW-NOTHINGISM     IN    RHODE    ISLAND 


BY 

CHARLES  STICKNEY,  A.  B. 


REPRINTED  FROM  THE  PUBLICATIONS  OF  THE 
RHODE  ISLAND  HISTORICAL  SOCIETY. 


OF   THE 

((   UNIVERSITY 

OF 


PROVIDENCE,    R.    I. 
1894 


U    V 


1 


KNOW-NOTHINGISM  IN  RHODE  ISLAND. 


During  the  years  1854-' 5 5-' 56,  when  the  Kansas-Nebraska 
strife  was  absorbing  the  attention  of  the  whole  country, 
obliterating  party  lines  and  alienating  the  fraternal  feeling 
between  the  North  and  the  South,  a  new  political  organization 
was  swiftly  and  secretly  formed ;  its  spread  over  the  country 
was  magical  and  its  strength,  as  demonstrated  at  the  polls, 
was  wonderful.  The  party  was  quickly  formed,  swept  the 
North,  and  dissolved,  on  account  of  the  absence  of  cohesive 
principles ;  in  its  various  stages  and  in  the  different  portions 
of  the  country  it  bore  different  names,  but  that  by  which  it 
was  most  generally  known  is  "Know-Nothing,"  from  the  fact 
that  its  members  always  asserted  that  they  knew  nothing 
not  only  of  the  principles  but  also  of  the  existence  of  such  a 
party. 

When  it  had  reached  such  a  prominence  as  to  make  a  de 
nial  of  its  existence  absurd,  its  partizans  called  it  the  Ameri 
can  Party,  and  in  certain  States  we  find  promulgated  orders 
and  announcements  of  "The  Sons  of  '76,"  and  "The  Order 
of  the  Star-Spangled  Banner."  In  the  adoption  of  such  names 
two  motives  seemed  to  prevail :  to  impress  upon  all  that  they 
were  radically  and  enthusiastically  American,  and  to  induce 
as  many  as  possible  to  join  their  ranks  by  the  use  of  patriotic 
or  quasi-patriotic  appellations.  This  same  spirit,  we  shall 
see,  manifests  itself  in  other  ways,  and  it  is  to  be  recollected 
that  they  very  frequently  in  communications  and  orders 
signed  themselves  "  Sam,"  on  account,  it  has  been  said,  of 
the  name  of  "Uncle  Sam"  given  to  our  government.  Like 
wise  in  their  campaigns  they  made  frequent  use  of  a  sup 
posed  command  given  by  Washington  on  an  important  occa 
sion,  "  Let  none  but  Americans  be  placed  on  guard  to-night." 


192368 


But  the  great  movement  of  the  '5o's  was  only  a  renewal  of 
earlier  movements.  From  the  foundation  of  the  government 
a  strong  anti-foreign  feeling  was  manifest ;  this  brought 
about  the  enactment  of  the  Alien  and  Sedition  Laws  in  1798. 
But  the  radicalism  and  injustice  of  those  measures  overthrew 
the  Federal  Party  and  occasioned  a  kindlier  feeling  towards 
immigrants.  In  succeeding  years  we  see  the  nativist  feeling 
bursting  forth  from  time  to  time ;  opposition  to  Gallatin  was 
based  upon  his  foreign  birth,  while  in  1844  the  feeling  became 
more  evident  in  the  existence  of  the  United  American  and 
the  Native  American  parties. 

During  the  great  movements  attending  the  Mexican  war, 
the  fixing  of  the  northwest  boundary,  and  the  Compromise  of 
1850,  the  nativist  feeling  somewhat  subsided.  But  these  very 
movements  forced  to  a  dissolution  the  Whig  Party  and  weak 
ened  the  Democratic.  The  people  began  to  think  for  them 
selves,  and  the  old  tenets  of  parties  so  ably  advocated  by  Clay, 
Calhoun,  Webster  and  Benton,  were  no  longer  regarded  as 
vital.  The  policy  of  the  South  became  more  manifest,  the 
growth  of  anti-slavery  sentiment  in  the  North  was  vigorous. 
Among  the  great  mass  of  voters  whom  the  new  questions  had 
forced  from  their  former  party,  or  greatly  alienated  from 
their  attachment  for  it,  there  was  a  field  especially  adapted  to 
the  propagation  of  new  ideas.  And  when  the  party  with  its 
strong  feeling  against  the  foreign  element  made  its  appear 
ance  in  the  field  of  American  politics,  a  large  mass  of  voters, 
who,  as  far  as  having  any  fixed  principles  is  concerned,  were 
"floaters,"  immediately  attached  themselves  to  the  new  or 
ganization. 

But  it  was  not  alone  the  movements  which  I  have  men 
tioned  that  gave  birth  and  vitality  to  the  new  party.  The 
immigration  from  the  continental  countries  and  Ireland  had 
been  unprecedented  during  the  previous  ten  years.  The  dis 
covery  of  gold  in  California  and  the  bountiful  crops  through 
out  the  country  were  strong  inducements  for  immigration, 
while  the  general  disquietude  throughout  Europe  in  1848, 
and  the  Irish  famine,  were  driving  many  to  seek  other  places 
in  which  to  live. 

A  large  part   of  this  immigration  was  Catholic  and  espe- 


5 

cially  subservient  to  Catholic  domination.  The  Catholic  press 
of  this  country,  as  well  as  the  clergy,  was  radically  ultramon 
tane  in  its  views,  nor  did  it  hesitate  to  express  these  views 
even  in  a  time  of  great  excitement.  It  is  probable  that  the 
thoroughness  with  which  public  attention  was  absorbed  in 
the  Kansas-Nebraska  struggle  emboldened  the  Catholic  ele 
ment  to  overstep  the  bounds  of  wisdom  in  their  assertions  of 
Catholic  domination — especially  the  assertion  that  the  Pope 
could  summon  all  possessors  of  temporal  power,  and  execute 
judgment  upon  them. 

The  State  of  New  York  was  the  section  of  the  country  in 
which  they  most  urgently  advocated  their  claims  —  the  divi 
sion  of  the  public  school  fund  and  the  enactment  of  certain 
laws  favoring  them  in  the  possession  of  ecclesiastical  prop 
erty.  The  feeling  against  foreigners  in  general  and  Catholics 
in  particular,  was  not  decreased  by  the  struggle  in  New  York ; 
but  when  the  Pope  sent  a  nuncio  to  this  country  to  arrange 
a  settlement  of  the  difficulties,  the  feeling  was  greatly  inten 
sified.  Especially  was  this  true  when  the  nuncio  was  received 
everywhere  and  by  the  Government  at  Washington  with  what 
seemed  more  than  due  respect  and  attention. 

It  was  now  that  a  movement  in  New  York  City  was  started 
by  a  committee  of  which  one  Barker  was  chairman  ;  on  June 
1 7th,  1854,  a  formal  constitution  was  adopted.  The  choice  of 
the  day  —  the  anniversary  of  Bunker  Hill  —  was  made  so  as 
to  arouse  a  patriotic  feeling. 

The  constitution  governed  the  organization,  which  was 
strictly  secret ;  it  provided  for  different  degrees  as  in  many 
secret  orders,  but  the  founding  of  the  new  party  on  these 
lines  was  in  conflict  with  the  spirit  of  the  Constitution  of  the 
United  States,  and  was  withal  dangerous  to  national  liberty. 
For  the  Constitution  forbids  Congress  making  any  laws  pro 
hibiting  the  free  exercise  of  religion  ;  and  if  the  American 
Party  could  proscribe  Catholics,  there  was  no  limit  to  their 
power  —  Jews,  Infidels  and  Protestants  were  all  subject  to 
their  dictation. 

Notwithstanding  these  facts  the  organization  grew  rapidly 
and  extended  through  many  of  the  northern  States  where 
the  reason  for  its  existence  could  not  be  advocated  with 


that  appearance  of  necessity  which  gave  rise  to  it  in  New 
York.  But  in  every  State  in  which  a  branch  was  organized 
under  the  Grand  Council — which  corresponded  to  our  present 
National  Executive  Committees  —  they  carried  the  elections 
with  varying  degrees  of  success.  Their  first  attempts  were 
in  municipal  elections,  for  it  was  in  municipal  affairs  that  the 
supposed  evil  influence  of  Catholics  was  especially  manifest. 
The  aspiration  of  being  a  national  party  did  not  seize  them 
till  they  had  been  intoxicated  with  minor  successes.  The 
party  was  stronger  in  the  North  than  in  the  South ;  the  little 
immigration  to  the  South  and  the  anti-slavery  feeling  which 
permeated  the  northern  members  of  the  party  being  the 
causes.  And  among  the  northern  states  it  was  strongest  in 
New  England,  the  home  of  the  authors  and  supporters  of 
those  Alien  and  Sedition  Laws. 

Gardner  was  elected  Governor  of  Massachusetts  by  a  two- 
thirds  vote,  while  the  two  branches  of  the  legislature  were 
strongly  Know-Nothing.  In  the  autumn  of  '54,  New  Hamp 
shire,  the  home  of  the  then  President  of  the  United  States, 
went  with  the  new  party,  and  Connecticut  dropped  into  line 
with  a  clean  sweep  of  the  State.  Rhode  Island  proved  not 
impervious  to  the  new  influence. 

The  political  conditions  existing  in  Rhode  Island  at  this 
period  were  in  some  respects  different  from  those  in  other 
States.  The  conservatism  of  the  State  had  prevented  much 
advancement  along  the  line  of  political  freedom,  and  the  tran 
sition  from  a  form  of  government,  thought  suitable  nearly 
200  years  before,  was  accomplished  only  by  revolution.  The 
Dorr  rebellion  was  not  successful,  in  the  fact  that  it  did  not 
overthrow  the  aristocratic  government,  but  it  caused  such  an 
agitation  of  the  subject  of  constitutional  amendment  that  the 
Charter  of  Charles  II.  was  laid  aside  in  1842,  and  a  mode  of 
government  adopted  granting  more  nearly  an  equality  of 
rights.  In  this  contest,  it  may  be  said  in  general,  were 
ranged  the  wealthy  against  the  poor,  the  aristocratic  against 
their  more  humble  neighbors.  The  foreign  element,  on  the 
whole,  sided  with  the  Dorr  faction,  partly  because  their  right 
of  suffrage  was  greatly  limited  either  on  account  of  their 
poverty  or  the  laws  of  naturalization,  and  partly  because 


their  leader  was  a  sympathizer  with  the  dominant  race — for 
at  this  time  by  far  the  greater  part  of  the  foreign-born  popu 
lation  of  Rhode  Island  were  Irish. 

During  the  time  from  the  adoption  of  the  new  constitution 
till  the  death  of  Dorr,  in  1854,  the  Dorrite  faction  was  sup 
ported  by  the  Democratic  Party  of  the  State.  The  reasons 
are  obvious.  And  in  the  future  political  contests  it  was  this 
element  which  saved  the  existence  of  the  party  when  others 
went  under. 

A  second  question  which  at  this  time  afflicted  the  people 
of  Rhode  Island  was  that  of  temperance,  and  of  this  the  State 
seems  to  have  had  periodic  visitations.  The  law,  afterwards 
so  famous  as  the  "Maine  Law,"  on  account  of  its  similarity 
to  one  on  the  same  subject  in  Maine,  had  been  passed  and  was 
in  1854  being  tried.  The  campaign  against  the  saloon  was 
very  vigorous  and  the  question  intruded  itself  into  all  matters  ; 
no  party  could  ignore  it,  and  every  candidate  for  any  office  of 
importance,  was  first  required  to  state,  if  it  were  not  already 
known,  his  position  on  the  Maine  Law.  In  the  campaign  of 
1854,  the  Democratic  Party  came  out  unequivocally  against 
it  ;  but  it  had  the  tact  to  base  its  opposition  not  on  the  un 
constitutionally  or  injustice  of  the  law,  but  upon  the  non- 
enforcement,  and  hence,  practical  failure  of  the  same.  No 
law  can  be  enforced  which  has  a  mere  majority,  and  that  sup 
porting  it  half-heartedly.  There  can  be  little  doubt  that  the 
law  was  poorly  enforced.  With  redoubled  zeal  the  temper 
ance  advocates  applied  themselves  to  the  task  of  saving  the 
law  from  repeal.  Papers  were  established  whose  first  and 
most  prominent  object  was  the  enforcement  of  the  law.  Open- 
air  meetings  were  held  in  every  town  in  the  State ;  the  pulpit 
resounded  with  denunciations  of  the  evil,  and  the  press  was 
energetic.  The  question  in  the  years  covering  Pierce's  ad 
ministration  drew  more  attention  and  commanded  more  votes 
than  did  the  question  of  franchise,  which  had  in  a  measure 
subsided  after  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution  in  1842. 

But  a  greater  and  more  engrossing  question  was  that  of 
Catholic  influence  and  domination.  Notwithstanding  the  fact 
that  Rhode  Island  had  been  the  most  advanced  in  religious 
toleration,  the  bitterness  against  the  Catholics  in  this  State 


8 

was  deep.  But  all  that  was  said  and  done  cannot  be  regarded 
as  the  result  of  genuine  apprehension.  When  the  Know- 
Nothing  Party  adopted  a  constitution  in  1854,  they  thought 
they  had  a  mission  to  perform  ;  the  desire  to  become  a  na 
tional  party  overshadowed  all  other  desires.  It  is  true  that 
they  were  still  animated  by  the  one  idea — hostility  to  Catholic 
influence  ;  but  in  the  organization  of  the  councils  in  each 
State  their  one  object,  to  carry  the  State,  was  to  be  accom 
plished  by  whatever  means  or  arguments  were  most  potent. 
In  a  strong  anti-slavery  section  their  position  on  the  slavery 
question  was  the  rallying  principle  for  partyless  voters.  In 
Massachusetts  they  found  their  best  argument  to  be  in  de 
fence  of  that  principle  for  which  they  were  supposed  to  have 
been  founded — to  keep  Catholics  out  of  office  and  Catholi 
cism  restricted  in  its  influence. 

In  Rhode  Island  they  had  a  variety  of  principles  ;  they  ad 
vocated  all  that  was  popular, whether  they  were  Whig  or  Demo 
cratic  principles.  The  foreign-born  population  of  Rhode  Island 
was  about  30,000,  or  one-fifth  of  that  of  the  whole  State,  and 
the  occupation  of  this  element  threw  them  into  congregations 
where  their  evil  influence  was  easily  imagined.  "  America 
for  the  Americans  "  was  the  rallying  cry.  The  anti-slavery 
cause  was  not  omitted  from  the  declared  principles  for  which 
the  party  contended.  By  advocating  this — and  they  were 
probably  more  sincere  in  it  than  in  their  denunciation  of  for 
eigners — they  attracted  to  themselves  a  large  following  from 
the  Whig  Party  and  not  a  few  Democrats.  In  the  history  of 
Know-Nothingism  in  Rhode  Island  there  is  only  one  fact  that 
can  be  absolutely  asserted.  In  the  Spring  of  1855  it  con 
quered.  When  it  came  no  one  can  say,  what  it  saw  can  only 
be  imagined.  Its  proceedings  were  too  secret  and  its  records 
too  few  to  betray  much  of  its  existence.  There  was  a  third 
party  in  the  field  of  Rhode  Island  politics  in  1854,  but  it  went 
by  the  name  of  "Independents  " — a  very  non-committal  title  ; 
in  the  campaign  which  this  party  waged  there  is  nothing  to 
indicate  that  it  had  anything  in  common  with  the  Know- 
Nothings  of  a  year  later.  It  corresponded  most  nearly  to  our 
Prohibition  Party,  composed  of  radical  temperance  men  with 
a  sprinkling  of  those  who  were  radical  on  other  subjects. 


Although  the  party  accomplished  nothing  at  the  polls,  its 
advent  was  the  beginning  of  Whig  dissolution  in  the  State, 
and  in  that  way  was  instrumental  in  contributing  to  Know- 
Nothing  success. 

It  is  not  improbable  that  the  formation  of  a  council  for 
Rhode  Island  was  begun  soon  after  the  adoption  of  the  party 
Constitution  in  June,  for  allusions  are  made  from  time  to  time 
in  the  press  of  the  day  to  secret  gatherings,  and  an  uncertain 
feeling  penetrating  all  ranks  of  politicians.  Whether  the 
dreaded  party  was  organized  among  them,  the  Democrats  and 
the  Whigs  knew  not.  In  July,  1854,  the  Providence  Post,  the 
Democratic  organ,  protested  against  the  action  of  the  gov 
ernor  when  he  issued  arms  and  uniforms  to  two  companies  of 
men,  who  called  themselves  the  "  Guards  of  Liberty."  The 
companies  were  composed  wholly  of  native-born  Americans, 
and  the  Post  considered  it  a  manifestation  of  the  presence  of 
Know-Nothingism  and  an  attempt  on  its  part  to  have  a  mili 
tary  footing  in  the  State. 

It  will  thus  be  seen  how  suspicious  the  old  parties  had  be 
come.  When  the  November  election  approached,  the  fact 
that,  so  far,  the  Know-Nothings  had  never  lost  an  election, 
was  discouraging,  and  prospects  were  very  depressing  to  the 
professional  politicians,  for  the  fall  election  in  Massachusetts 
was  a  most  decided  victory  for  the  new  party,  and  the  polit 
ical  condition  of  that  State  was  not  very  dissimilar  to  that  of 
Rhode  Island.  A  few  days  previous  to  the  Massachusetts 
election,  an  election  was  held  in  this  State,  but  it  was  not  a 
general  election  ;  rather  for  action  on  the  proposed  amend 
ments  to  the  State  Constitution,  while  there  were  a  few  by- 
elections  to  unimportant  offices.  It  was  in  the  election  of  an 
assemblyman  from  Cumberland,  that  the  Know-Nothings  were 
first  successful  in  this  State.  In  that  contest  the  Democrats 
nominated  their  strongest  man,  a  native  American,  and  a 
man  of  tried  ability — Fenner  Brown ;  on  the  whole  he  depre 
cated  foreign  influence,  but  he  had  not  pronounced  himself 
decidedly  against  it  at  an  opportunity  he  previously  had. 
The  Whigs  made  no  nomination,  while  the  Know-Nothings 
brought  forward  one  Boyden,  whom  they  elected  by  the 
small  majority  of  16.  But  small  as  it  was,  it  signified  much. 


10 

Whatever  may  have  been  done  in  perfecting  their  organiza 
tion,  but  little  had  been  publicly  done  ;  so  little  indeed,  that 
no  one  knew  of  the  certain  presence  of  the  party.  Nearly  a 
month  later  the  Worcester  Spy  said  :  "  From  all  that  we  can 
learn,  there  are  pretty  certain  indications  that  Rhode  Island 
will,  at  the  next  election,  place  herself  by  the  side  of  Massa 
chusetts  on  the  American  question,  for  it  seems  that  '  Sam  ' 
has  marched  across  the  disputed  boundary." 

From  the  November  election  till  that  held  in  April,  the 
Know-Nothings  conducted  a  vigorous  campaign,  though  a  se 
cret  one.  There  were  no  public  Know-Nothing  meetings  of 
a  political  character,  but  every  thing  was  done  under  cover  of 
secrecy.  As  the  election  of  1855  resulted  in  the  annihilation 
of  the  Whigs  and  the  success  of  the  Know-Nothings,  by  a 
five-sevenths  vote  of  all  cast,  there  was  some  essential  force 
which  contributed  to  the  result ;  and  as  the  party  held  their 
power  for  little  more  than  a  year,  this  force  was  something 
which  could  not  long  continue  to  dominate  men. 

In  the  consideration  of  this,  those  three  questions — Slavery, 
Catholicism  and  Intemperance,  which  were  being  agitated  in 
the  State,  must  not  be  overlooked.  But  why  did  the  oppo 
nents  of  each  ally  themselves  with  the  Know-Nothing  Party  ? 

In  moments  of  excitement  men  are  often  borne  away  be 
yond  the  domains  of  reason  ;  to  accomplish  their  desires  they 
will  grasp  at  every  object  which  may  seem  to  be  helpful  to 
their  cause  ;  and  the  movements  of  1854  and  1855  were  only 
aberrations  of  political  reason.  The  Catholic  organization  in 
respect  to  its  nunneries  and  some  of  its  rites  and  customs 
was  secret,  and  a  secret  order  was  founded  to  combat  it. 
There  was  not  a  crime  committed  by  an  Irishman  that  was 
not  flashed  before  the  public  as  a  proof  of  the  evil  influence 
of  their  religion  ;  there  was  not  a  statement  of  a  prominent 
priest  or  bishop  that  was  not  picked  to  pieces  and  considered 
in  the  light  of  prejudice.  In  the  State  of  Massachusetts  a 
committee  was  appointed  by  the  legislature  to  visit  certain 
Catholic  nunneries,  so  as  to  bring  to  light  their  supposed  in 
iquitous  practices.  Ex-priests  and  nuns  who  advertised  them 
selves  as  having  escaped  from  convents,  harangued  in  public 
or  wrote  for  the  press.  In  Providence,  a  great  amount  of 


II 

political  excitement  was  made  of  the  case  of  a  young  lady 
who  entered  a  convent  ;  hand-bills,  bearing  the  startling 
headline,  "  Americans  to  the  Rescue ! "  were  freely  circu 
lated  ;  on  them  it  was  asserted  that  she  had  been  compelled 
to  join  against  her  own  and  her  parents'  will.  At  the  time 
appointed  for  the  rescue  a  small  crowd  gathered  in  front  of 
the  convent,  but  no  attempt  was  made,  as  there  were  too  many 
police  to  make  it  successful. 

This  was  done  after  the  young  lady  in  question  had  asserted 
in  the  daily  papers  that  her  act  was  voluntary,  although  op 
posed  by  her  parents.  An  affair  which  occurred  in  New  York 
helped  to  incite  the  citizens  here.  A  man  named  Poole  had 
been  very  prominent  in  the  movements  of  the  new  party. 
After  a  time  of  some  excitement  he  was  killed  by  one  of  the 
roughs  of  the  Bowery.  He  was  regarded  as  a  martyr  and 
honored  with  imposing  funeral  ceremonies.  Leading  Know- 
Nothings  in  this  city  declared  that  they  had  been  threatened 
with  like  treatment,  but  asserted  their  intention  to  meet  it,  if 
necessary. 

This  was  the  method  which  they  had  adopted  in  their  work 
of  winning  voters.  The  influence  of  the  press  in  this  State 
in  favor  of  the  Know-Nothings  was  limited  ;  they  had  no 
avowed  organ,  but  the  Whig  papers  gave  them  limited  sup 
port.  This  was  true  of  the  Joitrnal  and  especially  of  the 
Providence  Tribune,  which  was,  primarily,  the  organ  of  the 
temperance  advocates.  Early  in  the  campaign  they  assumed 
a  neutral  attitude  towards  the  secret  order,  and  finally  con 
sented  to  defend  them  and  their  principles.  But  the  pages  of 
all  the  papers  seem  to  have  been  free  for  the  use  of  "  Sams" 
and  "  Anti-Sams,"  for  we  find  long  controversies  running  in 
the  papers  ;  yet  these  articles  bore  not  at  all  on  the  question 
of  the  day,  but  dwelt  on  what  had  or  had  not  been  done  in 
other  times,  together  with  creeds  and  doctrines. 

The  Protestant  clergy  on  the  whole  seem  not  to  have  taken 
hold  of  the  question  with  any  great  zeal  ;  yet  we  find  clergy 
men  elected  to  the  legislature  of  Massachusetts  as  members 
of  the  new  party.  Only  one  instance  is  recorded  of  a  minis 
ter  preaching  especially  on  the  subject,  and  that  was  of  a 
Boston  divine,  who  misquoted  for  his  text,  saying,  "  My  breth- 


12 

ren,  Paul  was  a  '  Know-Nothing,'  for  he  says,  '  I  determined 
to  know  nothing  among  you,'  etc.  Let  us  be  like  him."  But 
this  fact  was  attested  by  an  Anti-Know-Nothing  paper. 

In  this  contest  there  was  much  feeling  against  the  new 
party,  among  the  Catholics  in  the  Democratic  Party,  and 
among  many  Whigs  who  feared  the  results  attending  the 
machinations  of  a  secret  organization. 

The  Democratic  State  Convention  heartily  denounced  the 
Know-Nothings,  and  made  their  destruction  one  of  the  prin 
cipal  objects  to  be  accomplished  in  the  election.  The  party 
organ,  the  Post,  published  in  full  the  outrageous  conduct  of 
the  nunnery-investigating  committee  appointed  in  Massachu 
setts.  This  committee  exceeded  its  instructions  and  aroused 
great  indignation  throughout  New  England.  But  one  of  the 
most  powerful  methods  of  attack  was  the  publication  in  full 
of  the  oaths  of  the  order,  together  with  certain  signs,  pass 
words,  etc.  The  penalty  for  breaking  the  oath  is  not  stated  ; 
from  an  instance  which  came  to  notice  it  appears  to  have 
been  a  boycott  of  the  betrayer,  but  it  was  seldom  accom 
panied  with  personal  violence.  A  right-angled  triangular 
piece  of  white  paper  pasted  up  in  certain  places  was  a  call  for 
a  mass  meeting.  A  red  paper  with  an  equilateral  triangle 
meant  trouble,  and  each  one  must  come  prepared.  Only  one 
public  call  was  made  for  a  convention  and  the  convention 
itself  was  secret.  As  more  clearly  indicative  of  the  feeling 
and  attitude  of  the  parties  toward  the  new  organization  a  few 
quotations  from  the  dailies  are  made.  The  Providence  Post 
(Democratic)  of  November  loth,  1854,  said:  ''American 
Party,  and  other  like  terms,  are  coming  into  common  use.  If 
one  could  only  tell  their  meaning  it  would  be  agreeable. 
They  doubtless  have  some  peculiar  significance  as  now  used. 
Whatever  they  may  be,  and  we  confess  our  ignorance  on  this 
point,  such  a  use  of  the  words  is  certainly  unfortunate." 

December  29th.  "  The  fact  that  a  new  organization  is 
about  to  make  its  first  appearance  at  the  ballot-box  is  one  that 
should  not  be  lost  sight  of.  Its  power  no  man  can  estimate, 
its  objects  are  mysterious  and  whether  bad  or  good  the  results 
only  can  show." 

February  i6th.     "  The  Whig  Party  may  be  said  to  have  re- 


13 

solved  itself  into  its  original  elements  ;  all  that  remains  of  it 
is  to  be  found  in  the  mysterious  depths  of  Know-Nothingism 
or  abolitionism." 

March  27th.  "  We  have  now  an  organization  whose  whole 
purpose  is  to  give  new  strength  and  life  to  the  Whig 
Party." 

But  this  last  quotation  must  not  be  taken  as  true ; 
not  only  did  the  election  returns  prove  its  falsity,  but  like 
wise  the  nominations  of  the  Whig  and  Know-Nothing  Par 
ties,  each  of  which  had  a  ticket  of  its  own.  These  were 
the  tactics  adopted  by  the  Democratic  organ  to  rally  Dem 
ocrats  to  their  party's  support  by  intimating  that  their  old 
opponent  was  their  opponent  still  and  not  a  new  and  differ 
ent  organization. 

As  the  organ  of  the  Whigs  the  Journal  showed  less  opposi 
tion.  April  2d,  a  few  days  previous  to  the  election,  it  asks  : 
"Are  there  any  Whigs  left?  We  believe  there  are.  We 
hear  on  all  sides,  indeed,  of  strange  defections,  of  men,  from 
whom  such  a  thing  would  have  been  least  expected,  who  have 
gone  into  the  secret  organization ;  but  we  hear,  too,  of  men 
who  are  neither  frightened  nor  disposed  to  submit." 

Again  it  said  :  "  It  is  the  duty  and  should  be  the  pleasure 
of  every  Whig  to  stand  by  his  party." 

On  the  next  day  it  had  evidently  forgotten  who  those  men 
were  who  were  "neither  frightened  nor  disposed  to  submit," 
for  it  says,  "  If  there  is  one  Whig  left  in  each  ward,  we  will 
thank  him  to  call  at  this  office  and  take  the  proxies  [ballots], 
We  don't  know  whom  to  give  them  to."  The  following  day 
it  expresses  gratification  at  seeing  several  old  Whigs  and 
being  assured  of  their  support. 

As  the  April  election  drew  near,  the  Democratic  Party  and 
the  secret  organization  made  ready  for  the  contest.  The 
advantage  was  obviously  with  the  Know-Nothings.  The 
Whigs  had  ceased  to  be  an  element  in  the  campaign  as  an 
organization,  while  the  Democratic  platform  was  satisfactory 
to  but  few  besides  its  authors.  Their  convention  was  held 
early  in  March,  when  a  strong  ticket,  headed  by  A.  V. 
Potter,  was  nominated.  The  Know-Nothings  made  a  public 
call  for  a  secret  convention.  The  Providence  Tribune,  the 


14 

organ  of  the  Maine  Law  Party,  was  partial  to  the  new  organ 
ization,  and  on  the  iQth  of  February  contained  the  following 
call: 

"REPUBLICAN  STATE  CONVENTION. 

"  A  Republican  State  Convention  will  be  holden  at  Unity 
Hall,  in  the  city  of  Providence,  on  Thursday,  March  8th,  1855, 
for  the  purpose  of  nominating  candidates  for  State  offices 
and  representatives  to  Congress  who  are  known  to  be  op 
posed  to  the  encroachment  of  the  Slave  power,  especially  as 
exhibited  in  the  repeal  of  the  Missouri  Compromise,  opposed 
to  the  interference  and  influence  of  foreigners  in  state  and 
national  affairs,  and  in  favor  of  the  principles  and  faithful  ex 
ecution  of  the  law  against  drinking-houses,  etc." 

This  can  hardly  be  considered  an  early  call  of  the  present 
Republican  Party,  for  at  that  time  the  name  "Republican," 
as  applied  to  any  party,  had  not  been  resuscitated,  and  this  is 
the  first  time  the  word  had  been  used  in  Rhode  Island  as  a 
party  name  for  a  long  period. 

These  facts,  the  principles  set  forth  in  the  call  and  the 
assertion  afterwards  of  Know-Nothings,  together  with  the 
work  accomplished  in  that  convention,  make  it  partially  cer 
tain  that  although  issued  under  the  name  "  Republican,"  it 
was  thoroughly  a  Know-Nothing  affair. 

Two  days  later  the  call  was  fathered  by  a  writer  who  signed 
himself  "  Sam  "  to  an  article  which  said  : 

aWe  take  the  same  platform  as  enumerated  in  the  call  for 
a  '  Republican  Convention/  announced  in  your  paper.  We  in 
Rhode  Island  embrace  temperance,  restoration  of  the  Mis 
souri  Compromise,  the  total  abolition  of  all  foreign  influence, 
whether  in  the  name  of  the  Pope  of  Rome,  or  of  Bishop 
Hughes  of  New  York."  The  latter  prelate,  it  may  be  well 
to  add,  was  one  of  the  most  influential  Catholics  in  the 
United  States  at  that  time,  and  by  far  the  most  pronounced 
in  the  defense  of  Catholic  rights. 

Of  the  results  of  this  convention  no  record  has  been  found. 
The  convention  met,  but  its  proceedings  were  secret.  The 
Warren  Star  published  as  the  ticket  nominated  by  this  con 
vention  the  following  :  "  For  Governor,  '  Sam  ; '  for  Lieut. - 
Governor,  *  Sam  ; '  "  and  in  like  manner  the  same  gentleman 


15 

was  a  candidate  for  every  office  on  the  ticket.  This  will  illus 
trate  the  secrecy  with  which  they  did  their  work. 

It  was  declared  by  the  Democratic  and  Whig  press  that  a 
convention  of  the  Know-Nothings  was  held  March  27th, 
for  on  that  day  was  published  their  party  ticket,  headed  by 
W.  W.  Hoppin,  who  was  at  that  time  the  Whig  governor  of 
the  State.  It  is  not  probable,  though  of  course  possible,  that 
a  convention  was  held  on  that  date,  for  all  the  nominations 
were  made  by  the  grand  council  of  the  State  ;  and  the  date 
would  have  been  too  late  for  an  active  campaign.  The  next 
day  a  Whig  convention,  attended  by  few,  was  held.  For  a 
long  time  it  was  questioned  among  the  leaders,  whether  it  was 
advisable  to  nominate  a  ticket  at  all,  so  discouraged  had  they 
become.  They  re-nominated  their  State  officers  for  the  most 
part. 

In  the  three  tickets  offered  to  the  people  the  Whigs  and 
Know-Nothings  nominated  the  same  candidates  for  governor 
and  representative  from  the  eastern  congressional  district,  N. 
B.  Durfee.  In  the  western  district  there  was  no  Whig  can 
didate,  there  being  only  six  Whigs  present  at  the  nominating 
convention,  so  little  was  the  interest  manifested  in  that  party. 
The  Democrats  and  Know-Nothings  combined  on  one  man, 
or  rather  the  Know-Nothings  nominated  one  who  had  already 
been  nominated  by  the  Democrats  ;  this  was  B.  B.  Thurston, 
the  candidate  for  congressional  honors  from  the  western  dis 
trict  ;  the  other  Democratic  nominee  for  Congress  was  Davis, 
a  naturalized  citizen. 

It  is  impossible  to  say  whether  these  Democrats  and  Whigs 
who  were  placed  on  the  Know-Nothing  ticket  were  members 
of  the  organization  or  not.  The  presumption  is  that  they 
were,  for  while  all  three  were  prominent  men  and  would 
strengthen  any  ticket  on  which  they  might  be  placed,  they 
were  not  necessary  to  Know-Nothing  success.  They  were 
either  actual  members  of  the  organization,  or  active  support 
ers  of  its  principles ;  and  the  grand  council  of  the  State  did 
not  at  that  time  look  so  much  to  obtaining  office  as  to  the 
execution  of  certain  principles.  It  is  probable  that  any  re 
spectable  man  the  Know-Nothings  might  have  nominated 
would  have  been  elected,  for  they  were  undeniably  strong. 


i6 

Their  very  secrecy  was  a  source  of  strength  to  themselves 
and  of  weakness  to  their  enemies. 

Outside  the  two  opposing  parties  the  Know-Nothings  had 
little  to  contend  with.  In  some  districts,  as  in  Newport,  a 
rival  secret  organization,  styling  itself  the  Anti-Know-Noth- 
ing  Party,  made  nominations  for  municipal  offices. 

When  election  day  came,  there  was  no  doubt  in  the  minds 
of  any  except  of  the  blindest  politicians  that  the  Know- 
Nothings  would  elect  their  ticket.  ThefournaS,  commenting 
on  the  registering,  which  had  been  done  systematically  by  the 
Know-Nothings  alone,  asserted  that  at  the  close  of  the  day 
preceding  the  last  on  which  voters  might  register,  there  were 
in  the  city  of  Providence  two-thirds  who  had  not  listed  their 
names.  The  Post  assumed  a  forced  cheerfulness  and  hope  as 
to  the  result. 

The  election  was  an  overwhelming  defeat  for  Democrats 
and  Whigs  alike.  Gov.  Hoppin,  the  candidate  of  two  parties, 
received  10,500  to  2,300  for  the  Democratic  candidate.  The 
real  strength  of  the  parties  is  best  shown  in  the  vote  for  lieu 
tenant-governor  and  the  other  State  officers.  Here  the 
Know-Nothing  strength  was  8,875  J  Whig,  1,258  ;  Demo 
cratic,  2,274  J  this  was  a  decrease  of  about  8,000  from  the 
Whig  vote  of  1854,  and  of  4,000  from  the  Democratic  vote  of 
the  same  year.  The  Democrats  saved  only  two  towns,  one  of 
which — Glocester,  had  long  been  a  democratic  stronghold  ; 
the  other  was  Foster.  It  is  curious  to  note  that  the  feeling 
against  the  temperance  law  was  very  strong  here.  It  was 
said  that  no  place  in  the  State  took  so  little  interest  in  the 
temperance  movement  as  Glocester.  Both  branches  of  the 
General  Assembly  were  strongly  Know-Nothing. 

In  the  year  during  which  they  had  control  of  the  State  gov 
ernment  we  cannot  see  any  marked  changes  in  legislation  or 
execution  of  the  laws.  They  did  not  attempt  to  go  to  that 
radical  extreme  to  which  the  legislature  of  Massachusetts  had 
gone,  nor  did  they  retain  control  of  the  offices  long  enough  to 
undertake  and  accomplish  any  great  measures.  The  same 
governor  continued  in  office  and  pursued  the  same  course.  In 
the  following  spring  a  new  condition  of  affairs  caused  new 
combinations,  and  while  the  Know-Nothings  were  nominally 


in  the  field,  their  influence  had  greatly  declined.  The  rising 
Republican  Party  supplanted  them,  and,  like  the  Whigs,  they 
disappeared  altogether.  Yet  we  can  find  some  of  their  old 
prejudices  still  existing  in  the  minds  of  men,  who  though  now 
old,  were  once  members  of  that  powerful  organization,  adopted 
its  principles  and  have  refused  to  abandon  them  when  true 
American  patriotism  asserts  that  those  principles  are  hostile 
to  the  safety  of  a  free  government. 


OF    TH~ 

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